Electrifying winger Mark Nawaqanitawase is set to make his return from injury for the Roosters on Friday, but they will be without Cody Ramsey who is crook and will miss the trip to Canberra.<\/p>\n
Nawaqanitawase hasn\u2019t played since round 9 when he suffered a syndesmosis injury that required surgery and ruled him out of a potential NSW Blues debut. <\/p>\n
But he got through Wednesday\u2019s training session and is set to return in a huge boost for the Roosters who are without veteran winger Daniel Tupou.<\/p>\n
\u201cYesterday was the real test for us to make sure that he was right to tick off everything he needed after that syndesmosis (injury). It\u2019s looking good for him to play tomorrow,\u201d Roosters coach Trent Robinson said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn some areas he brings a creativity and a finish that\u2019s really important. He\u2019s a high-quality player. <\/p>\n
\u201cBut then in other areas, that\u2019s just a team concept rather than an individual that\u2019s going to change it. It\u2019s a whole-team concept, so no individual coming in or out (is going to change that). It has been a collective.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nawaqanitawase will take his place on the right wing, with Robinson confirming Ramsey won\u2019t play against the Raiders.<\/p>\n
\u201cCody\u2019s actually a bit crook,\u201d he said, with Ramsey\u2019s comeback after 1337 days out already one of the feel-good stories of the year.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe only just found that out sort of half an hour ago, so he won\u2019t travel with us.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ball control has been a major focus for the premiership fancies this week after they made 18 errors against the Storm on Saturday on a night they managed just one try.<\/p>\n
That performance came after they made 14 mistakes at Magic Round in the loss to North Queensland, with an animated Robinson giving it to his players in the Melbourne sheds after the loss. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe first thing is to discuss it, and then the second thing is to do it at training,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s a really key part of the game is talking about it, but training it, and then it\u2019s up to us to perform that tomorrow night.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s not the single focus, either. You want to improve that, and we\u2019ve been pretty good at that this year. The last two games has not been what we wanted, So we talk about it, practise it, and then go out and do it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Holding onto the ball in 2026 has been imperative for teams under the new rules that has rewarded possession and territory.<\/p>\n
The Roosters have always played an attacking brand of footy that has sometimes resulted in high error counts, but they have shown at different stages this year that elite ball movement and high completions can coexist.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think we\u2019ve shown that we can do both,\u201d Robinson said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI go back to the Manly game where it was sort of about 96 per cent (completions). I think we had one (error) in that game, and there\u2019s been others throughout that period where we\u2019ve been able to do both. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve been able to score points but then also control the ball, and that\u2019s the game. That\u2019s pretty clear what\u2019s needed in the game, and our job is to go out there and get it done.\u201d<\/p>\n